Deputy Commissioner of Police (airport) K.C. Dwivedi told IANS: "We have arrested Sanjay Somany and produced him before the court. He belongs to the Somany family and owns a glass manufacturing company."

According to police, N.K. Puri, a passenger, lodged a complaint early Monday that his BlackBerry phone had been stolen.

"He (Puri) was going from Delhi to Mumbai in IC 688 flight which was scheduled to leave at 6.30 a.m.," a senior police officer said.

The airport authorities immediately checked the CCTV footage and found out that a person wearing a blue dungaree had picked up a phone at the airport.

"The authorities found out that the man boarded a Delhi-Chennai flight at 6.05 a.m. The co-passengers and the air hostess also confirmed his presence on the aircraft. He was identified as Sanjay Somany," the police officer added.

"In the evening, when airport authorities were investigating the incident, a passenger told officials by phone that the same person is sitting next to him (at Chennai airport) and is going to board IC 539 Chennai-Delhi flight," the official said.

When one of the security personnel went up to him and asked if he is Sanjay Somany, he confirmed his name but grew suspicious.

"In the aircraft, he hid the phone in the toilet. When the flight landed at Delhi airport at around 9 p.m., he was detained by the airport authorities. The phone was also found in the aircraft," the officer said.

Somany is the managing director of Hindustan National Glass and Industries Limited, which is one of the biggest glass manufacturing units of the country.

He is a commerce graduate and has a diploma in diesel engineering. He is a former president of All India Glass Manufacturers' Federation.

A case under sections 380 (theft) and 411 (retaining or receiving stolen property) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against him.

Source: Indo-Asian News Service

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